


i wonder (what it's like to be loved by you)

by Pyro__Jo



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst, Bullying, Confusion, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, Fluff, Hope is a confused bisexual mess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:55:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27413071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pyro__Jo/pseuds/Pyro__Jo
Summary: Josie could be described as many things but three words came to Hope's mind that seemed to fit her accurately: pretty, cunning, and a bitch. Josie was the epitome of every cliché high school mean girl movie wrapped into one short little mini skirt with the bitchiest of attitudes to tie it all together.-Hope never understood what made Josie hate her so badly but when she starts to get closer to Josie, she wonders if she ever really knew Josie at all. The complicated part? Hope's new girlfriend thinks Hope is Josie and Josie starts to fall for Hope while helping her pull off the charade.
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman, Jade & Hope Mikaelson, Jade/Josie Saltzman, Penelope Park/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 18
Kudos: 75





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hiii it's been forever since I've posted anything but I was watching sierra burgess is a loser on netflix and it kind of inspired this fic lmao

"Remind me again why you thought this was a good idea," Rafael grumbled as he and Hope stood in front of bulletin board where Hope was currently hanging several posters advertising her tutoring services. "Mystic Falls High isn't exactly known for its excellence in academics, nor do they seem to care about the lack of education."

"Maybe that should change. Besides, I could use the cash. I'm a little tired of riding my bike everywhere or having to wait till Aunt Rebekah isn't busy to use her car. She said I had to earn the money if I wanted a car. Something about the value of hard work and treating things with more care if you earn them yourself or something like that. Honestly, I tuned out after a couple minutes since I hear that speech so often." Hope scoffed. 

Rafael chuckled.

Hope stepped back and surveyed her work. Satisfied, she turned towards her homeroom and crashed straight into the girl that had haunted her dreams for as long as she could remember: Josie Saltzman.

Josie could be described as many things but three words came to Hope's mind that seemed to fit her accurately: pretty, cunning, and a bitch. Josie was the epitome of every cliché high school mean girl movie wrapped into one short little mini skirt with the bitchiest of attitudes to tie it all together.

Her minions were no better. Maya Machado and Alyssa Chang completed the mean girl checklist.

Step one: have the worst attitude known to the entire high school for some unexplainable reason. Step two: rule the school and gain power based on fear and well placed insults aimed at the deepest insecurities of anyone caught in the cross hairs of said mean girls. Step three: have at least two other girls that follow the lead mean girl around, supplying mindless insults and chatter when there is anything more than a three second lull in conversation.

"Watch where you're going, hobo." Josie shook the arm that had touched Hope in disgust. "Do you think bad fashion sense is contagious?" She wrinkled her nose in disgust and gave Hope a quick once over.

Hope looked down at her clothes and frowned. She didn't think she looked that bad when she got dressed this morning but now she wished she had opted for wearing her new boots instead of her old beat up boots. She scoffed mentally. New boots would not help distract from the bisexual disaster energy that exuded from her in waves like a tsunami.

"Come on, Hope. Let's just go. Some people just live for misery. She's not worth your time." Rafael rolled his eyes at Josie's disgusted look and tugged Hope in the opposite direction.

Hope glanced back over her shoulder at Josie and groaned as she saw the brunette and her posse tear down the posters she had spent a good amount of time designing and printing out. She sighed heavily and continued on her way to class.

"Miss Mikaelson, if I could have your attention, that'd be great. Thank you."

Hope blushed furiously and pulled her attention back to English class. "Sorry, Ms. Tig."

"Now that I have everyone's attention, here's what I want you guys to do for your end of the year projects. This will be worth twenty five percent of your final grade for this class so pay attention and put some real effort into it. You won't be able to finish this in one night and get away with it."

Ms. Tig paused and looked at a particularly noisy group of students, raising her eyebrow at Maya who seemed to be the center of the disruption. Maya withered under her gaze and she cleared her throat and continued.

"As I was saying, this project is worth twenty five percent of your final grade. I want you all to choose one classic novel, read it, write a report on it, and then make a diorama based on the book you choose. I trust you all to use your own judgment on what book you choose but if someone chooses to write a report based on the three little pigs, I will be disappointed in you and your lack of ambition. Choose-"

Hope tuned out of Ms. Tig's speech. It was not the first lecture the class had gotten about lack of ambition and it probably would not be the last.

The bell rang, snapping Hope back to the present.

"Everyone start thinking about what you want to do your projects on. Miss Mikaelson, I'm very excited to see what you come up with. I'm sure it will be flawless as usual. Literary creativity runs in the family." Ms. Tig smiled at her.

Hope grimaced and forced a smile before fleeing the classroom.

"Any ideas for your project, Hope?" Rafael fell in step beside her.

Hope frowned. "Nothing concrete yet. I wish Ms. Tig would stop talking about my family in class. It puts an enormous amount of pressure on me. I know they're talented. No need to remind me of it every time we have a project due." She huffed and opened her locker.

"I think it's supposed to be a compliment but I guess I could see how that would put pressure on you. How are you doing? I know this is a weird time of year for you and with all the pressure of school…" Rafael trailed off and pursed his lips before continuing. "Why don't we got out and see a movie tonight? A change of scenery could be good for you and help take your mind off of things."

"Sure, I guess we could do that. Meet you there around seven? I'll see if I can borrow Auntie Bex's car."

"Yeah." Rafael smiled, glad that Hope actually agreed to go out instead off locking herself in her room like she did almost every weekend.

"See you at lunch?"

"Yeah, I think it's pizza day," Rafael practically drooled.

Hope shook her head and chuckled. "See you then, dork."

Hope pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater. It was packed but she shouldn't be surprised. It was a Friday night in a small town. The movie theater was one of the only sources of entertainment in Mystic Falls. She finally found an empty space near the back of the parking lot. As she maneuvered to pull into the space, there was a loud squeal of tires as Josie Saltzman's red Jeep pulled into the spot. Hope tensed up when she realized who it was.

Josie popped out of the vehicle along with her minions and her sister, Lizzie. "Oops sorry, loser. Didn't see you there. You weren't going to park there, were you?" Josie's brow furrowed in mock sympathy.

Hope opened her mouth to reply but never got the chance.

"Sorry, don't care." Josie walked away, laughing.

Hope rolled her eyes and sighed. She finally found an empty space and parked. She wandered into the theater and got in line for tickets. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and shot a text to Raf letting him know she was there.

**Hope:** Hey sorry I'm late. The dark overlord stole my parking spot and I had to park at the far end of the lot.

**Raf:** No worries. Are you in line now?

**Hope:** Yeah. I'll pay for tickets and you pay for snacks?

**Raf:** Sounds good

Hope looked up and realized she was next in line. She paid for the tickets and met Raf by the snack stand.

"Don't look now but the wicked bitch of the west is over at that table in the corner."

Hope glanced out of the corner of her eye and saw Josie laughing about something with her friends. "It must be pretty lonely being her. Everyone is so afraid of her and what she'll do to them that they either suck up to her and do whatever she tells them to do or they get bullied if they stand up to her. It must be lonely to not have any real friends." Hope shook her head. "I almost feel sorry for her. Anyways, we should get going so we're not late for the movie."

Raf nodded and started to follow her. "Wait, Hope," he yanked on Hope's sleeve. "Is that blonde chick asking her out?"

Hope and Raf ducked behind the protection of a wall and watched as a cute girl with blonde hair nervously approached Josie and start talking to her. The girl bashfully tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and ducked her head. A few seconds later, the girl returned to her friends with an excited smile lighting up her face.

"That poor girl doesn’t know what she just got herself into," Raf commented.

Hope simply hummed in response.

Later that evening, Hope settled in her room, comfortably dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt. She pulled her homework out of her book bag and decided to try to get a head start on her English project. Her phone dinged just as she sat down at her desk. She glanced at the screen but didn’t recognize the number.

**Unknown:** Hey :)

 **Hope:** Who is this?

**Unknown:** Oh right sorry guess I should've led with that. It's Jade, from the move theater tonight.

Hope stared at the screen and seconds later an image popped up: the cute blonde Hope had seen talking to Josie earlier. Hope panicked. _Shit, why does she have my number?_

Hope paced around her room, trying to decide what to do. Admittedly, the girl was attractive but was it wrong to keep texting her if she thought Hope was Josie? Hope didn't have time to think of an answer before her phone dinged again and another text popped up from Jade.

**Jade:** That was a really lame introduction on my part. Can we start over? I'm Jade, nice to meet you :)

**Hope:** Nice to meet you too :)

Hope blushed and exited out of the app. It couldn't hurt to make a new friend, right?


	2. Chapter 2

Hope took it back. It could hurt. It could hurt a lot. Jade was sweet and attentive. It wasn't like Hope set out to catfish Jade. She kept telling herself that she would tell Jade, that this was really all just a big misunderstanding. For some reason though, every time that Jade texted her, she just couldn't bring herself to tell the truth.

"Hope, this is ridiculous. Just tell her the truth. She seems really sweet; she doesn’t deserve to be led on," Raf pleaded with her at lunch a couple weeks later. "Realistically, where do you see this going? You'll have to confess at some point if you ever want to go on an actual date with her. You know that, right?" Rafael dipped his head to catch Hope's gaze.

Hope averted her eyes to look at the ceiling. "I know." Her voice came out soft and she lowered her eyes to stare at the table in front of her. "I really like her , Raf. What if I tell her and she doesn't want to keep talking? It's not like I have people breaking down my door wanting to date me. Go figure that the moment I finally find someone new after that whole fiasco with Landon and she thinks I'm someone else." Hope scoffed.

"You don't know whether or not she'd like you unless you're actually honest with her." Raf raised an eyebrow at her. "Think about it, Hope. How would you feel if you were in her shoes?"

Hope sighed and ran her hand through her disheveled curls. "I know," she whispered.

"So you're going to tell her, right?"

"Soon. I just need to figure out how and gather the courage."

"Good. Give her the benefit of the doubt. Not everyone is going to drop everything and leave at the first sign of trouble."

Hope nodded. "How is Landon?" She eyed Rafael, taking note of his subtle mention of her ex and his foster brother.

"He's doing ok. He finally got everything unpacked in his new apartment."

There was an awkward silence for a few seconds. Hope cleared her throat and stood. "I should get to class." She walked off before he had a chance to respond.

The bell rang, bringing Hope out of her daydream during Ms. Tig's lecture.

"Miss Mikaelson and Miss Saltman, see me after class please."

Snickers and murmurs of "You're in trouble now." and oooh's filled the room as students filed out of the classroom.

Hope shoved her books and papers into her backpack but stayed seated, waiting for Ms. Tig to speak.

Josie glanced over and her and made brief eye contact before scoffing, rolling her eyes, and walking to the front of the classroom.

The room was finally empty. Ms. Tig cleared her throat and shuffled some papers around on her desk. She appeared nervous.

"Can we get this started? I have class in a couple of minutes." Josie crossed her arms and glared at Ms. Tig.

Hope rolled her eyes. Josie even thought she was better than the teachers around here.

"Actually, Josie, why don't you head to class and I can talk to you at lunch?"

"Whatever," Josie flipped her hair over her shoulder and flounced out of the room.

"What did you want to talk to me about, Ms. Tig?" Hope smiled at her teacher, hoping to make up for Josie's rude behavior.

"Look Hope, I know your schedule is probably pretty hectic and I'm not saying you have to do this but you're the best student in my class."

Hope raised an eyebrow, wondering where her teacher's rambling was headed.

"I'm asking you to consider offering your services as a tutor. It would only have to be once or twice a week after school for a couple of hours."

Hope scrutinized Ms. Tig for a few seconds. "Why do I feel like there's a catch?"

Ms. Tig sighed. "Miss Saltzman is the one you'd be tutoring. I know you two don't always see eye to eye but I think this could be good for you both."

Hope snorted and shook her head. "Josie and me not seeing eye to eye is a mild way to put it."

"Please just consider it."

Hope sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "If you can get Josie to agree to it, I'll do it." Hope shrugged on her backpack and stood. "Good luck with that. She hates me with a fiery passion. She'd rather die than accept help from someone below her social class."

Hope stood by her locker, grabbing the last few things she needed before going home.

"Hey, Mikaelson!"

Hope jumped and slammed her head into her locker door.

Josie smirked at her. "Klutz."

Hope rubbed her head and glared at Josie. "What do you want?"

"Relax, Shrimpy."

Hope scowled at the reminder of her size.

"I'm not here to tease you about your coordination skills- or lack thereof, rather." Josie smirked that same teasing smile from before.

Hope had the brief thought that it really suited Josie. She flushed at her thoughts. "What do you want?" She gritted her teeth and glared at Josie, shaking her previous thoughts of Josie's smile from her mind.

"Ms. Tig suggested I get a tutor. She told me you could do it. I don't agree of course but she seems to think that I can learn something other than terrible fashion sense and great conversational skills from you." Josie's brows scrunched together and she ran her eyes over Hope. "Seriously, do you even look in a mirror before you leave your house? Did you just buy the same shirt in three different colors and alternate between them?"

Hope huffed and crossed her arms, feeling slightly insulted. "Are you trying to ask me for help or insult me? I honestly can't tell the difference." Hope deadpanned.

Josie sighed. "What do you want from me? Do you want me to beg?"

Hope's eyes widened and she blushed furiously at the thought of that sentence coming from Josie in a much different context. She pushed the thought from her head immediately, mortified that it even crossed her mind. She desperately tried to remember what it was that she and Josie had been talking about. "T- that won't be necessary," she stammered. When had her thoughts become so chaotic? "When are you available to start?"

Josie smirked, as if she knew exactly what Hope had been thinking. "I have cheer practice every day until four thirty but I'm free after that."

"Uh, ok, sure. How about tomorrow evening? Maybe around six thirty?" Hope slammed her locker shut and slung her bag over her shoulder. She hadn't expected Josie to even accept help from her in private, let alone be seen talking to her in the school halls.

Josie groaned. "Really, Hope? You have nothing better to do than study on a Friday night?"

Hope frowned. "That's my offer. Take it or leave it."

"Fine," Josie pouted.

"Text me your address. I know you have my number. At least, I know you did a couple weeks ago when you gave it to a girl who is now convinced I'm you." Hope locked eyes with Josie, staring her down defiantly. She didn't know where the sudden burst of confidence came from but it felt good.

She brushed past Josie, leaving the very astonished looking brunette in the hallway.

Hope stopped her bike outside of a large house. It was more like a mansion. She gaped at the size of it. She knew that Josie's dad had a good job but she didn't realize how loaded they were.

Pulling out her phone, she shot a text to Rafael.

**Hope:** I'm at the she-devil's house now. Wish me luck.

**Raf:** Good luck. I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think. Think good vibes. Call me when you're done :)

Hope smiled a small smile and approached the door. She knocked. A few seconds later, Josie answered the door.

"Hey," Hope greeted her. Josie nodded in response and stepped back in invitation to allow Hope inside.

"We can study in the kitchen. Lizzie isn't home from ballet yet so it's just us. Do you want anything to drink? I think we have juice…" Josie trailed off, checking the fridge to see what they had.

"Water is fine." Hope was shocked at Josie's change in demeanor. She couldn't remember the last time Josie had spoken to her without insulting her or just simply being rude.

Josie filled two glasses with water and returned to the table where Hope had started unpacking some textbooks and notes.

"We should start with the material we've been learning for this chapter since we have a test on Tuesday. Then we can work on previous chapters to prepare for midterms. Where's your notes?"

Josie dug around in her bag and produced a notebook, handing it to Hope silently.

Hope flipped though the notes Josie had taken for the current chapter, furrowing her brows in thought. The notes weren't bad but they lacked organization. She looked up to ask Josie a question but noticed the other girl was nibbling on her bottom lip and had her eyes trained to the floor, almost as if she were afraid of what Hope would say next.

"I know they aren't that good. I don't really know what I'm even writing about half the time in class." Josie refused to make eye contact.

"These notes are fine, Josie. A little disorganized but that's not the end of the world. What do you usually do when you study?"

"Maya and Alyssa usually come over and we read over the notes once or twice and then get distracted." Josie shrugged.

Hope frowned and looked back at the notes. Josie had doodles scribbled of musical symbols along the edges of the pages. "What instrument do you play?"

Josie narrowed her eyes at Hope. "Ukulele, why? How is that relevant to studying?"

Hope ignored the question. "How long have you played?"

"Since I was ten. How is this relevant, Hope?"

"Because I don't think you've been studying the right way for you. Could you go get your ukulele?"

Josie sighed and shook her head. "What the hell? It couldn't hurt, I guess." She stood and disappeared from the room, returning shortly with the instrument in her hand.

Hope explained that some people memorized tunes and music easier than just straight facts from a textbook so she helped Josie write her English notes to different tunes.

Josie was skeptical at first but soon enough, Hope could see she was starting to retain some of the information. Josie had a really nice singing voice too.

"Ok, let's try it without music now." Hope fired question after question and Josie got most of them right.

They were nearing the end of the notes when Lizzie and Mr. Saltzman barged in. Lizzie only stayed long enough to grab a juice before muttering something about going to study in her room.

"Hey, Josie. Who's your friend?" Mr. Saltzman deposited some grocery bags on the counters and turned to study Hope.

"I'm Hope. I'm Josie's tutor for English." Hope smiled at him.

He sighed. "I would say it's nice to meet you but I'm probably going to have to pay you, right? How much do you charge per hour?"

Josie's face reddened. "Dad-" She got cut off by a sharp glare from him.

"Honestly, Josette, why couldn't you just study harder instead of hiring someone to try to make you smarter? It's a hopeless cause. Why can't you be more dedicated like Lizzie?" He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

Josie winced and studied the floor, not saying a word. Her pouty lips were drawn together in a frown and her shoulders slumped dejectedly. "I'm sorry," she finally whispered.

"Sorry doesn't pay the bills," Mr. Saltzman stated in a sharp, even tone.

Hope felt a pang of sadness in her chest. It shocked her. She never expected to feel something other than contempt for the brunette sitting beside her.

"Payment really isn't necessary. Josie is really smart, she just needed to find what study tactics worked best for her." Hope smiled at Josie, hoping to take some of the pressure off of her.

"If she was so smart, you wouldn't be here. No offense." He huffed and then seemed to remember some semblance of manners. "Will you be staying for dinner?"

"I should get home. My aunt will be worried. Thank you though." She turned to Josie. She had never seen the brunette look so much like a kicked puppy before. Her heart broke for Josie. Her behavior at school made more sense now. "I'll see you Monday?"

Josie barely nodded.

Hope grabbed her bag and left. She didn't call Rafael that night. Telling him everything that happened felt like a violation of Josie's privacy. Instead, she burrowed up with a book in her room.

Her phone buzzed. She expected it to be Rafael or Jade but was surprised to see a text from Josie.

**Josie:** Thanks for tonight.

Hope smiled and replied back almost instantly.

**Hope:** No problem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer: this story is based roughly on the movie sierra burgess is a loser. i modified it to fit hosie and changed some of plot but this is not my idea, merely a product of my imagination if the movie was about hosie :)

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all like it, let me know what you think
> 
>   
> Follow me on twitter @Pyro__Jo


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